Thomas Gent
Thomas Gent (4 May 1693 – 19 May 1778) was an English poet, prose writer, and printer, who spent most of his working life in York. He authored publisher several works, mostly histories, but was financially unsuccessful. His historical accounts, as well as details in his own autobiography, are considered to be valuable historical resources. Life Gent was born in Ireland. His father was an Englishman, and he was baptised a Presbyterian. His parents ensured he educated himself during his childhold, and in 1707 he began an apprenticeship with Stephen Powell, a printer of Dublin. Gent's apprenticeship was an unhappy one, and in 1710 he absconded, and stowed way on a ship, arriving in Wirral, England, then travelled to London where he took up an apprenticeship under Edward Midwinter. After completing his apprenticeship in 1713, he worked briefly for a Mrs. Bradford, and then for a printer named Mears, who involved him in a humiliating initiation rite, discharging him soon after, after which he subsisted by labouring. After several months he obtained a post with John White, King's printer for York, at a rate of £18 a year, plus board and lodging, arriving in April 1714. There he met Alice Guy, who he would later marry, who became the object of his affections. At the end of a year with White, Gent would not renew his contract until he had returned to Ireland and visited his parents, but was compelled to leave on account of Powell attempting to have him seized for absconding. After a period in York he returned to London, and again entered the employment of Midwinter. In 1717 he was admitted to the Company of Stationers, and became a freeman of London the same year. He briefly returned to Ireland again, visiting his parents, and returned to London, taking up employment under a Roman Catholic named Clifton, meeting Francis Atterbury, Bishop of Rochester, for whom he printed a defence of an imprisoned Clergyman. Gent was sought by Midwinter on a number of occasions to return to work with him, eventually leaving the troublesome Clifton. Gent was briefly arrested, on suspicion of printing treasonable works, and placed in prison for five days, but was acquitted without charge. Gent was seeking to establish himself as a printer in his own right, so that he had the means to marry Alice Guy. However she married Charles Bourne, grandson of John White and inheritor of his printshop, in 1721. Alice was widowed in 1724, and Gent travelled to York, marrying her in York Minster in December 1724, and by marriage, obtained a print business in York. Gent became publisher of Yorkshire's only newspaper, the Original York Courant, or Weekly Journal, previously the York Mercury. John White Jnr, printer of Newcastle, son of John White, who had hoped but failed to obtain the York Press for himself set up a rival business in York; the competition prompted Gent to begin to author his own works, and he published a history of York in 1730, followed by one of Ripon in 1733, and of Hull in 1735. Gent's paper ceased publication in 1728, and White's The York Courant became the predominant local paper. Also in 1735 he began publication of a journal Miscellanea Curiosa, concerned with mathematical and other problems – the publication was not a success. In 1741 Gent published a history of England, plus a history of Rome in the second volume. From the 1740s Gent's business went into decline, due to competition from John White Junior and other printers who had set up in York; he lost the lease on his house and print premises in Stonegate in 1842, and moved to a house in Petergate, where he continued to publish but with reduced output. He published several works covering religious topics, in poem form, the first being The Holy Life and Death of St. Winefred. On 1 April 1761 his wife, Alice died. His circumstances were much reduced in the last decades of his life, struggling with illness, and poverty, relying on the charity of friends. He died on 19 May 1778, and was buried at St. Michael-le-Belfry in York. Legacy Thomas and Alice Gent's only child Charles died in early childhood in 1726. Thomas Federer characterised Gent as the pre-eminent producer of chapbooks in Yorkshire during his career. Gent's poetry was of an uninspired quality, Tedder describes it as "beneath criticism", Gent's own woodcuts were also primitive.Dictionary of National Biography, Vol. 21 (1890) He is best known for his local histories of Hull and York and Ripon, which contain information not noted elsewhere, and are the earliest discrete histories of those towns; Gent's works are considered to be based on genuine research, observation or recording, and not based on a regurgitation of other accounts, and contain descriptions of objects not extant at the time of writing of later histories. Publications Poetry *''The Holy Life and Death of St. Winefred, and other religious persons: Done into verse, in five parts. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1743. *''The Contingencies, Vicissitudes or Changes of this Transitory Life. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1761. *''Poetical Pieces'' (edited by Heneage Dearing). York?, UK: 1772. *''Poetic Sketches''. Yarmouth, UK: John Beart, 1805. *''Poems''. London: T. Cadell / W. Sams, 1828. *''Poetic Sketches / Poems (1828). New York: Garland, 1978. Non-fiction *''God's Judgments Shewn unto Mankind: Being a true and sorrowful relation of the sufferings of the city of Marseilles in France. London: 1720. *''Divine Entertainments; or, Penitential desires, sighs, and groans of the wounded soul''. London: M. Hotham, 1724. *''The Antient and Modern History of the famous City of York. York, UK: Thomas Hammond, et al, 1730. *The Ancient and Modern History of the Loyal Town of Rippon. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1733. *''The Pattern of Piety; or, Tryals of patience. Scarborough, UK: Thomas Gent, 1734. *''Miscellanae Curiosae; or, Entertainments for the ingenious of both sexes''. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1735. *''Annales Regioduni Hullini; or, The history of the royal and beautiful town of Kingston-upon-Hull. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1735 **also published as ''Gent's History of Hull. Hull, UK: M.C. Peck, 1869. *''The History of the Life and Miracles of our Blessed Saviour Jesus Christ: From His birth to His cruxifixion; as also the lives, sufferings and death of the Evangelists and Apostles''. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1740. *''Piety Display'd: In the holy life and death of the antient and celebrated St. Robert, hermit, at Knaresborough. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1740? *''Historia Compendiosa Anglicana; or, A compendious and delightful history of England / A Succinct History of Rome: From its foundation by Romulus 'till the Fall of K. Tarquin / An Appendix, relating to York / A further historical account of Pontefract. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1741. **Volume 1 : [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=NW9bAAAAQAAJ&pg=PR17 Historia Compendiosa Anglicana]; Book 2; Book 3; Book 4; Book 5; A Comprehensive dissertation on the Ancient and Present State of Pontefract.. **Volume 2 : [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PW9bAAAAQAAJ&pg=PR1 Historia Compendiola Romana]; Book 6; Book 7; Book 8; Book 9; Addenda; Appendix; Index, errata *''British Piety Display'd: In the glorious life, suffering, and death of the blessed St. Winefred]. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1742 *Life of Mr. Thomas Gent, Printer of York; written by himself. 1746; London:T. Thorpe, 1832. *''The Instructive, Poetical and Entertaining History of the Ancient Militia in Yorkshire. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1760. *''The Most Delectable, Scriptural, and Pious History of the Famous Great Easter Window ... in St. Peter's Cathedral, York''. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1762. *''Divine Justice and Mercy Displayed: Set forth in the unhappy birth, wicked life, and miserable end of that deceitful Apostle, Judas Iscariot''. York: New Printing Office, 1772. *''Yorkshire Chap-Books'' (edited by Charles Federeer). London: Elliot, Stock, 1889. First series Edited *''Pious Contemplations: On the sacred histories, prophesies, and mysteries of holy religion ... exhibited by admirable personages''. York, UK: Thomas Gent, 1757. Except where noted, bibliographical information courtesy WorldCat.Search results = au:Thomas Gent, WorldCat, OCLC Online Computer Library Center Inc. Web, June 24, 2016. See also *List of British poets References * , prefaced in an 1869 reprint of the 1735, Gent's History of Hull, "Annales Regioduni Hullini" * * * * * * * Notes External links *Life of Thomas Gent at the Thomas Gent Family Home Category:British printers Category:People from York Category:British historians Category:History of York Category:1693 births Category:1778 deaths Category:18th-century poets Category:British book publishers (people) Category:English-language poets Category:English poets Category:Poets